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Does Yamaha have a roadmap for their 309-409 product lines? I've gotten very little help from the dealer and to me that seems strange, almost deliberate.

Most specifically I'm looking at the 309GP but the new 409 series is out with 4 layer sounds and USB recording. They do not at this time make a GP (Grand) in the 409 series, but a roadmap of what they are planning would be helpful. I've also read that the 409 series GP will be the full size 4'11" cabinet with a much higher pricetag and the 309GP in it's slim cabinet will remain, but I'd like that confirmed before I make my decision. For some reason companies that won't tell you what their planning with their product lines really irk me.

Tech companies are always reluctant to disclose their product plans for two reasons:1. Keep the competition in the dark.2. Protech their dealers who may have excess current model inventory that must be sold through before the new models hit.

I saw a prototype of the Yamaha full size digital grand at NAMM January 2006.

Yamaha is very protective of its product plans and Craigen indicated some very good reasons. Additionally, advance announcements of products can be embarrassing if the product is delayed. As Craigen stated, the CGP-1000 was announced in January 2006, with availability slated for late summer of 2006. However, it's late summer 2007 and the CGP-1000 is still not available in the U.S. It’s very probable that your dealer really doesn’t know.

However, if the timelines of the CLP-100 series (e.g., CLP-175) and the CLP-200 series (e.g., CLP-265GP and CLP-295GP) can be used as references, Yamaha will probably have GP versions for the CVP-400 series sometime next year. However, that's just my own personal guess.

Well, a recent discussion with my dealer added very little to the conversation other than there _might_ be a 400 series GP. If I take to 309GP I have 24 months of full trade-in value toward anything that's more than 1,000 more expensive than what I spent. So, I'm kind of protected in the event a 409GP comes along, other than having to pay a non-discounted price because it will be brand new. I was able to sit in front of a few 400 series digitals this weekend (not a 409 though), and boy did they seem nice.